Character Relationship Map: Cruella

Characters

• Estella / Cruella (played by Emma Stone) — protagonist

  Estella Miller is a gifted but rebellious fashion designer who becomes the outlaw persona Cruella after moving from childhood poverty into London's haute couture world. She works for the Baroness, dis...

• The Baroness (played by Emma Thompson) — protagonist

  The Baroness is an authoritarian and celebrated haute couture designer who hires Estella after noticing her talent. She is secretly Estella's biological mother, ordered John to dispose of her as a bab...

• Jasper (played by Joel Fry) — supporting

  Jasper is one of Estella's closest childhood companions and partners in street thefts. He helps her obtain work, assists with the theft of the necklace, releases rats during the Baroness's ball, and s...

• Horace (played by Paul Walter Hauser) — supporting

  Horace is Estella's longtime friend and criminal partner, living with her and Jasper by stealing in London. He helps retrieve the necklace, participates in taking the Baroness's Dalmatians, and is fra...

• Roger (played by Kayvan Novak) — supporting

  Roger is the Baroness's lawyer, but she fires him after he fails to stop Cruella's growing public influence. He later works as a musician, receives one of Cruella's puppies named Pongo, becomes captiv...

• Catherine / Maid (played by Emily Beecham) — supporting

  Catherine is Estella's caring mother and formerly a maid connected to the Baroness's household. She raises Estella in secret after John gives the baby to her, but dies when the Baroness's Dalmatians p...

• Anita Darling (played by Kirby Howell-Baptiste) — supporting

  Anita Darling is Estella's childhood friend and a society columnist whose public coverage helps turn Cruella into a notorious fashion figure. She reports on Cruella's theatrical appearances and later...

• The Baron (played by Tom Turner) — cameo

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Estella / Cruella → Roger (Professional Adversarial Employer Influence) — Although they do not work together, Cruella directly affects Roger's career.

  Cruella's campaign causes the Baroness to fire Roger for failing to stop her.

• The Baroness → Catherine / Maid (Professional Former Employer) — Catherine's service under the Baroness links the two families and the concealed birth.

  The plot identifies Catherine as one of the Baroness's maids before Catherine raises Estella.

• The Baroness → Roger (Professional Employer) — Roger works under the Baroness and suffers professionally because of Cruella.

  The Baroness fires Roger, her lawyer, after he fails to stop Cruella's public campaign.

• The Baroness → The Baron (Family Wife) — Their marriage is tied to the concealment of Estella's birth.

  The Baroness told her husband that their baby had not survived birth, and he later died of a broken heart.

• Estella / Cruella → Catherine / Maid (Family Adoptive Mother) — Catherine is the mother figure who raises Estella and whose death drives her revenge.

  Catherine raises Estella in secret after receiving her as a baby from the Baroness's valet.

• The Baroness → Estella / Cruella (Family Biological Mother) — Their hidden biological connection intensifies the central rivalry.

  Estella's birth records reveal that the Baroness is her biological mother.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• The Baroness → Horace (Conflict Persecutor) — Horace is punished as part of the Baroness's attempt to destroy Cruella's circle.

  The Baroness frames Horace for Cruella's murder and has him imprisoned.

• The Baroness → Jasper (Conflict Persecutor) — Jasper becomes a target of the Baroness's retaliation.

  The Baroness frames Jasper for Cruella's murder and has him imprisoned.

• Estella / Cruella → Anita Darling (Social Childhood Friend) — Anita provides social visibility without fully joining the criminal operation.

  The plot identifies Anita as Estella's childhood friend, and Anita helps publicize Cruella's appearances as a society columnist.

• Jasper → Horace (Alliance Teammate) — They form the practical core of Estella's found family.

  Jasper and Horace live and work together with Estella as a group of thieves.

• Estella / Cruella → Horace (Alliance Teammate) — Horace supports Estella's criminal and revenge plans.

  Estella befriends Horace in London and works with him and Jasper as a thief.

• Estella / Cruella → Jasper (Alliance Teammate) — Jasper is Estella's closest operational partner and longtime ally.

  Estella befriends Jasper in London, and the two later make a living as thieves and plan schemes together.

Story Analysis

A gifted outsider transforms grief and betrayal into a public fashion war against her biological mother.

Plot Progression

1. A Child Outside The Rules — Estella's rebellious creativity separates her from others. After Catherine dies at Hellman Hall, Estella escapes to London and joins Jasper and Horace.
2. Entering The Fashion War — Estella finds work at Liberty and attracts the Baroness's attention with an improvised window display. The discovery of Catherine's necklace draws her into a covert revenge plan.
3. Cruella Unleashed — Estella creates Cruella and steals the necklace during the Baroness's ball. After recognizing the Baroness's role in Catherine's death, she begins publicly humiliating her rival.
4. Ashes And Ancestry — Cruella sabotages the Baroness's spring collection and launches a rival show. The Baroness retaliates by framing the thieves and burning their hideout, while the birth records expose Estella's parenta...
5. The Fall That Fails — Estella frees Jasper and Horace and prepares a public trap at the charity gala. The Baroness pushes her from the balcony, but a hidden parachute allows Estella to become Cruella permanently.